UK report on Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) data for 2023

The UK Health Security Agency published a report on STEC data from 2023. The main points of the 2023 annual report are: (i) Overall, 2,018 cultured-confirmed cases of STEC were reported in England during 2023, a decrease of 2.2% compared to 2022. (ii) A total of 533 culture-confirmed cases of STEC O157 were reported in England in 2023 compared to 762 in 2022, a decrease of 30%. A total of 2,260 cases of STEC non-O157 were reported, representing a 14% increase compared to 2022 and a 125.6% increase compared to 2019. The most commonly isolated serogroup was STEC O26. Children aged 1 to 4 years had the highest annual incidence of STEC O157 infections. (iii) Around a third of confirmed STEC O157 cases and one third of STEC non-O157 cases in England were hospitalized. One death was reported among STEC O157 cases, and 2 deaths among STEC non-O157 cases. (iv) 2.1% of STEC O157 cases and 1.7% of STEC non-O157 reported developing HUS. 10% of confirmed STEC O26 cases developed HUS. (v) Seven outbreaks of STEC involving 228 cases, 145 of whom were residents in England, were investigated in 2023. One outbreak involved STEC O157, 3 involved STEC O145, 2 involved STEC O26, and 1 involved STEC O183. A suspected or confirmed vehicle was identified for all 7 outbreaks and included beef, salad leaves, cucumber, dried fruits, and dairy products.